1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a capsule medical device guiding system for guiding a capsule medical device, which is introduced into a liquid in a subject and equipped with a permanent magnet, and a magnetic field generating device for generating a magnetic field for the capsule medical device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, in the field of endoscopes, capsule endoscopes that include an imaging function and a wireless communication function in a capsule-shaped casing having a size introducible into an alimentary canal of a subject such as a patient have been developed. Such a capsule endoscope is swallowed through the mouth of a subject, and then is moved in the alimentary canal through peristaltic movement. The capsule endoscope sequentially acquires images (hereinafter, also referred to as in-vivo images) of internal organs of a subject, and wirelessly transmits the acquired in-vivo images to a receiving device outside the subject in sequence, during a time period until the capsule endoscope is excreted to the outside of the subject after being introduced into the alimentary canal of the subject.
The in-vivo images captured by the capsule endoscope are input to an image display unit via the receiving device. The image display unit displays the input in-vivo images on a display in the form of still images or moving images. A user such as a doctor or a nurse observes various in-vivo images of the subject displayed on the image display unit, and examines the internal organs of the subject through observation of the in-vivo images.
Further, in recent years, guiding systems for guiding (hereinafter, referred to as magnetically guiding) a capsule endoscope in a subject by using a magnetic force are being suggested. In general, in such a guiding system, the capsule endoscope further includes a permanent magnet within a capsule-shaped casing, and an image display unit displays various in-vivo images sequentially captured by the capsule endoscope within the subject in real time. The guiding system of the capsule endoscope applies a magnetic field for the capsule endoscope within the subject, and magnetically guides the capsule endoscope within the subject to a desired location due to a magnetic attracting force received by the applied magnetic field. The user manipulates magnetic guidance of the capsule endoscope by using a manipulation input unit of the system while referring to the in-vivo images displayed on the image display unit.
For example, a magnetic guiding system for a capsule endoscope which applies a rotating magnetic field for rotating about a horizontal axis center of a long axis of the capsule endoscope and reciprocally rotates the capsule endoscope about the horizontal axis center of the long axis, in order to submerge the capsule endoscope located on a liquid surface into a liquid against a surface tension of the liquid surface has been suggested (see, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2010-017555). Further, a technology of applying a magnetic field for pivoting a capsule endoscope in a long axis direction of the capsule endoscope while rotating the capsule endoscope about a long axis of the capsule endoscope has been suggested (see, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2005-058430).